


Jim Halpert-Centric One-Shots

by ProfJamie20



Category: The Office (US)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ambulances, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood, Blood and Injury, Bottom!Jim, Broken Bones, Car Accidents, Concussions, Dating, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Family, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Friendship, Hospitals, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Jim Halpert-centric, Jim-centric, M/M, Marriage, Multi, Pining, Polyamory, Relationship Problems, Requests, Romance, Staring, Tags will be updated as needed, Teasing, Whump, graphic depictions of injury, top!dwight
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-13
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:35:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22237972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProfJamie20/pseuds/ProfJamie20
Summary: Hello!! I’ve never taken fanfic requests before, but I figured now was the time!I will be taking prompts for Jim-centric one-shots (maybe two-shots??)!! Just be sure to read the rules first! <33||REQUESTS: OPEN (9 PENDING)||
Relationships: Jim Halpert/Dwight Schrute, Jim Halpert/Other(s), Pam Beesly/Jim Halpert, Pam Beesly/Jim Halpert/Dwight Schrute
Comments: 83
Kudos: 88





	1. Introduction & Rules

Hello everyone!!

I’ve never done fanfic requests before, but I felt ready to branch out a little more, and since this fandom isn’t terribly active, I figured this was a good start!

If you have any prompts, comment them down below!! I’d _love_ to hear them!!

Some rules before we get into the fun stuff:

\- No smut!! I’m not good at writing it!! (Implied/Referenced NSFW stuff is okay, though, within reason)

\- The fanfics must be Jim-centric (aka Jim is the main character/focus) I’m just the best at writing him, and also I need more fanfics with him in them shegsgdfdgg

\- The relationships I have tagged are the ones I am most willing to write (non-relationship fics are perfectly fine, too!!) I would be willing to _maybe_ write other ships, but idk how good it’ll be ://

\- Please no crossovers, I can’t write them

\- AUs are totally fine!! Just make sure they aren’t _too_ convoluted, and please make sure to explain it in your comment!

\- Please note that I _really_ love angst/whump, so if you have any ideas along those lines, I’d love to hear!! Trust me, it’s probably not too angsty for me dhdferffg

\- About the above point: Fluff/Romance/Non-Angst are also great things to request!!

\- This is kind of a specific rule, but I will not write any cheating fics. I AM willing to write “(unnamed character) cheats on (canon character) with (unnamed character)”, but nothing else! They just make me really uncomfy... (Example of something I will write: OC cheats on Jim. Examples of things I won’t write: Jim cheats on any character, canon character cheats on Jim) Sorry for any inconvenience!

\- I have the right to refuse any prompt for any reason, but that is super unlikely to happen, so don’t worry!

\- Remember, the worst that will happen is that I’ll just say “I’m not doing your prompt”, but that isn’t very likely to happen, so ask away!!

I can’t promise I’ll be terribly speedy, since I have school and exams are coming up, but I’ll try my best! _Please_ request things, I really want to write things for y’all!! No matter how weird you think it is, please send it my way!

Whatever happens, have fun, stay safe, and have a great day/night!! <33


	2. Mutual

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “anything jim/pam/dwight!! my forever headcanon is that jim and dwight Do have a mutual crush going on, so basically like all the awkwardness/hilarity that comes from having a thing for your best frenemy while also being very happily married”  
> ~ teethmarks
> 
> Jim loved both Pam and Dwight. The difference was that one love was romantic and one was platonic.
> 
> ...Right?
> 
> [TW: discussions of cheating (no actual cheating occurs, don’t worry, it’s just discussed)]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO I HAVEN’T ABANDONED Y’ALL!!!
> 
> Exams are done, but a new semester is starting, so idk what that entails. I will try my absolute hardest to get fics out, though!!
> 
> This chapter turned out angstier than previously intended, so I’m really sorry if that isn’t what you wanted. If you want something fluffier, I suppose you could make another request...? Shdgdggfgg
> 
> ALSO, I know this isn’t the first fic that was requested, but I felt like I had more of an idea for what to write with this one. If I write someone’s fic before yours, I promise it’s nothing personal, and I promise that I’m working on yours!!
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy this!! I’m sorry if it isn’t to your liking, but I tried my best! <3

There was one thing that many people knew about Jim upon meeting him: the man loved pulling pranks.

Another thing people knew: Jim only put effort into things he was really passionate about.

Put those two facts together, and you’ve got a very eloquently put together practical joke that would make even a trickster god green with envy.

Jim poured a lot of his time and energy into messing with others. If he wasn’t annoying someone, he was annoying someone else _with_ them. He just enjoyed getting a small rise out of people. Only in good fun, of course. He never wished to truly hurt anyone, and he made sure to never overstep any boundaries. That being said, he really loved pranking others.

And there was no one Jim loved pranking more than Dwight.

Ever since they had first met, Jim had noticed how _easy_ it was to get a rise out of the other man. All he had to do was switch a few things here, say some things there, and Dwight was completely and utterly fooled. He never even seemed to learn. He fell for things over and over again, and even though he got quite mad, he never avoided Jim. That allowed Jim to prank him as many times as he pleased.

It started being one of his favourite parts of the day, along with getting to talk to Pam. He would set up his trick — each one more elaborate than the last — and wait for the payoff. It worked almost every time, and every time it was tremendously satisfying.

They may have been worst enemies, but Jim didn’t know what he would do if Dwight wasn’t there.

As time went on, Jim began to try and think of more complex pranks he could pull. He spent a lot of his time studying Dwight, trying to figure out the best course of action. And, of course, what would garner the best reaction.

Jim watched the way Dwight walked, watched his routines, how he worked, what he did during his breaks. All so that he could figure out what pranks would be the best to pull.

At least, that was how it had started out.

Even after he had planned several good pranks, Jim continued to observe Dwight frequently. He told himself it was only so that he could get even more ideas for jokes, but that was only half the truth, if even. Still, Jim could explain away his inexplicable desire to watch Dwight easily enough. The other man was just _fascinating_ , was all.

He was having difficulty finding an excuse for how _often_ he was doing it, though. And for how flustered he would get when Dwight would catch him staring. And for how much he _enjoyed_ staring at Dwight.

What had started off as normal — or, at least, semi-normal — observational periods had evolved into something a little too much.

In fact, _everything_ was a little too much. Jim spent a little bit too long staring at Dwight. He expended a little bit too much energy on Dwight’s pranks. His face was a little bit too warm. His heart beat a little bit too quickly. His palms were a little bit too sweaty. He sat a little bit too close, talked a little bit too much, felt a little bit too happy.

He was a little bit too in love.

By the time Jim realized that, it was far, far too late.

It had hit him like a truck full of bricks. He had been confused about his feelings for quite some time, but one day, he noticed that something about them felt very familiar.

That was when he realized that he was feeling the exact same way towards Dwight that he had felt when he was pining for Pam.

Jim was scared, really. Scared and confused. There was no feasible way that he was crushing on _Dwight K. Schrute_. No, it wasn’t even crushing. He had fallen head over heels _in love_ with the man.

Jim felt severely nauseous for the next few days after his discovery, mulling over the same question over and over in his head.

_Was he cheating on Pam?_

He had never done anything with Dwight (and the thought of doing anything with the man made Jim feel emotions he couldn’t even describe), but he was still pining, wasn’t he? Was that still considered cheating?

But in order for it to be cheating, he’d have to not love his current partner, right? But he loved Pam with his whole heart, and he had never gone a day where he regretted being married to her.

So what was it? Was what he was feeling morally wrong? Was he just confused?

Would he have to choose?

Jim barely got any work done for the next week or so, focusing instead on the increasing pain in his chest and the nausea in his stomach. He tried to ignore Dwight outside of professional interaction. No jokes, no pranks, nothing. It was insanely difficult and painful, and Dwight seemed rather confused, but Jim felt that maybe if he could just ignore Dwight, his messed up feelings would go away.

They didn’t.

His heart still fluttered when he would catch a glimpse of Dwight’s face in his peripheral. His cheeks still warmed up when Dwight would walk somewhere close to him. He was still deeply, deeply in love. Too much in love.

It was nothing, though. He could ignore it. It wasn’t like Dwight would even reciprocate, anyway.

That thought hurt more than it should have.

Jim’s feelings of confusion and guilt about his loyalty only continued to grow as the days went by. So, when Pam asked him to have a personal conversation with her, it was safe to say that he was utterly sick to his stomach.

They were both sitting beside each other on their bed. Jim had his hands clasped tightly together as he stared down at his lap.

“So...” Jim began, his voice sounding far too weak to his ears, “What did you want to talk about?”

Pam stayed silent for a little bit before gently bringing her hand over to Jim’s clasped ones, separating them and interlocking their fingers together.

“You love me, right?” She asked, looking deeply into Jim’s eyes. Her tone was calm and gentle.

He did, he did, he loved her so, so much.

“Beesly, of course I love you,” he assured in as genuine a tone as he could muster, staring deeply back into her eyes, “I love you, and I will never stop loving you.”

She smiled softly. “Yes, I know you do. I love you too, Jim,” she replied, her voice full of affection. Jim felt love for his wife flood his heart, but he also knew that the conversation was far from over.

They both stayed silent for a while longer before Pam looked back at Jim and said the words he had been dreading.

“I’m not the only one you love, though.”

There was no anger or bitterness or sorrow in her tone. She hadn’t even phrased it like a question. Still, Jim felt his heart skip several beats. His grip on her hand tightened slightly. Should he be honest with her?

Jim decided that he should.

Jim worried his lip with his teeth before responding, not even daring to look at her face. “...No, you’re not.”

Intense amounts of shame, guilt, and despair welled up in his heart. This was the moment that Pam was going to get mad and cry and yell at him and leave him because Jim was a greedy scumbag who couldn’t even pick one person.

That wasn’t what she did, though.

Pam gently laid a hand on Jim’s cheek and turned his head so that he would face her. Her eyes had welled up with tears, but she had a large, loving smile on her face.

“It’s Dwight, isn’t it?” She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Her smile never faltered.

Jim flicked his eyes back and forth between her face and the wall, feeling horribly guilty. “...Yes.”

Pam sniffed as a tear trailed down her cheek. Jim felt his heart shatter, his guilt multiplying tenfold.

But then, Pam did something unexpected.

She laughed.

Pam let out a small, teary chuckle that evolved into a fit of giggles. The hand that had continuously been pressed against his cheek had been moved to his shoulder. Jim felt even more confused than he had before.

“You two may be very different in many regards, but there’s one major similarity between you guys,” she began in a playful tone as her laughing died down, “You both are _painfully_ obvious when you’re crushing.”

Jim felt like his brain had imploded.

“Y-You’re not mad?” Jim asked in a small voice.

“No! No no no, I’m not, I’m so sorry if I gave that impression,” Pam assured, “I mean, I wish you had told me sooner, but I’m not mad.”

Jim hadn’t thought it was possible for humans to reach the level of confusion he currently held, but apparently it was.

“I... Y-You... Uh...” Jim stammered, feeling his brain short-circuit in his skull. His eyes widened as Pam’s previous words finally registered. “Wait, what do you mean by _both crushing?!_ ”

Pam barked out another loud laugh in response. “You _seriously_ haven’t noticed the way he acts around you? I figured you would’ve noticed his heart eyes by now, considering the way you’re staring at him constantly.”

Jim felt his face grow very warm. He was sure that he was bright red at this point. “I didn’t think anyone noticed that...” He mumbled in embarrassment. Pam laughed again.

But then the words clicked. Dwight... Dwight had a _crush on him too?!_

“Wait a minute!” Jim cried out in alarm, “You said _Dwight_ has a crush on _me?!_ ”

Pam nodded. “Yep. A pretty obvious one, too. In fact, I’m not sure if this is the right time to tell you this, but I’m pretty sure he has a crush on me, too.”

Jim felt his brain officially shut down.

“He _what?!_ ”

“Mhm.”

Jim felt his heart beating terribly fast. He tried to understand all of the information being shoved at him.

Dwight was in love with him. Dwight Schrute reciprocated his feelings. He could _also_ be in love with Pam. _Jim_ was in love with Pam. Was Pam in love with Dwight?

Jim was still trying desperately to map out the confusing triangle in his head when Pam put a hand on his arm.

“It’s alright, Jim, just relax,” she said soothingly. Jim realized then how tense he was. His leg was bouncing up and down and his breathing was short and shallow.

“It’s just...” He let out a shaky breath. His voice dropped to a whisper. “Is it wrong?”

Pam looked confused. “Is what wrong?”

Jim looked down at where Pam’s hand still lay on his arm, grounding him. He was about to push the concern that had been plaguing him for the past week out in the open. “...How I feel. Is it wrong for me to... to feel this way? Towards two people?”

Pam gave his arm a light squeeze, prompting Jim to look at her. She gave him a soft look.

“Jim,” she began, never breaking eye contact with him, “You’re allowed to love more than one person if everyone in the relationship consents. There’s nothing morally wrong with that.”

Jim sat there dumbfounded for a moment, but then something felt like it just... _clicked_. What had previously felt like too much began to feel like a little bit less.

“Y-You can?” Jim asked, some of his excitement bleeding into his tone. He was too shocked to care at the moment.

“Yes, you can, Jim. You can.”

“But, uh,” Jim began, “...Do you consent to that?”

“Yes. Yes, I do,” she answered. Her face flushed a light shade of pink as she smiled. “Honestly, he’s pretty cute.”

So Pam _did_ love him as well. That certainly made things a lot easier.

“I’m really glad you told me, Jim,” Pam continued, “I know it wasn’t easy.”

“Honestly, it feels amazing to get it off my chest, this has been bothering me for over a week now,” Jim admitted.

“Tell me about it. I wanted to tell you earlier as well, but I didn’t know how to bring it up.”

They both finished up their conversation with a hug and a kiss, feeling closer than ever before. There was still a third person they needed to have a chat with, but that could come later.

Jim felt much less nauseous and much more free when he returned to work the next day. He sat down in his chair and greeted Dwight happily. This caused the other man to quirk up an eyebrow at him.

“Finished with the silent treatment, are we?” He asked incredulously.

Jim smirked at him. “Yeah, I lost the ability to speak for about a week, but I got my voice back now.”

Dwight narrowed his eyes. “No you didn’t. You were still able to talk, you said several sentences, at the very least.”

“Did I?” Jim began, forming a puzzled expression on his face, “I don’t believe I did. Are you sure you weren’t... hearing things?”

“I... What? I was _not_ hearing things.”

“Hmm... I wonder...”

Jim felt satisfaction bloom in his chest as Dwight growled something else before angrily returning to his work. He felt his heartbeat quicken slightly in response, but he wasn’t quite so afraid of it this time.

Now that Pam had mentioned it, Jim could see a glint of something warm and affectionate inside of Dwight’s steely gaze, and he wondered how he had never noticed it before. He had always been rather oblivious when it came to noticing complex emotions…

Jim and Pam glanced at each other and gave a knowing smile. Jim had a feeling it was going to be a good week.

About two or three weeks later, Jim and Pam would confess their feelings to Dwight, and the three of them would officially be in a relationship. It was strange, it was rocky at times, but to Jim, it no longer felt like everything was too much.

To Jim, everything finally felt just right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments if you enjoyed, or even if you didn’t! Comments really help motivate me, even if it’s just one word!!  
> Hope you enjoyed! Feel free to send more requests!


	3. Nepotism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I guess the first one I have is where Jim is Michael’s (adopted) son but they hid it from everyone except Toby. Dwight finds out because Jim goes to Michael’s condo a lot and assumed Jim was putting out for better leads but finds out Jim takes care of Michael’s domestic stuff because he knows his dad is shit at it. Michael tells Dwight privately that someone left Jim on his doorstep as a baby so he kept him while Jim just thinks Michael is is biological father. I also envisioned teen!Jim having a crush on Toby and that being the reason why Michael hates him even tho he’d grow out of it.”  
> ~SoftIceCream
> 
> Jim figured that being hired by his father was a major conflict of interest, but he really did need the job.
> 
> Besides, “Jim Halpert” had a nice ring to it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAVE RETURNED!!
> 
> I’m really sorry about the long wait, but this was kind of a hard one to write, to be honest. I LOVE the AU, but AUs are always a lot more complicated than other fics.
> 
> I realize that I really didn’t include a lot of the things in your comment, and for that I’m sorry. I just feel like if I had tried to include it all, I would’ve ended up with a novel shdffdffggh
> 
> Anyway, I hope you still enjoy it, even if it is missing some stuff! I tried my best!
> 
> (Also, this chapter is quite dialogue-heavy, be warned)
> 
> ((PS this chapter was literally the worst thing ever to format I’m so done dhdrertfgh))

Jim tied his tie around his neck with far more concentration than necessary. He fumbled with the piece of fabric as countless anxious thoughts ran through his head.

Today was the day. The first day of work.

Sure, Jim had had jobs in the past, but they were mostly just in retail, or the occasional summer job. Not that those weren’t important, but it felt nice to finally have the opportunity to make more than minimum wage.

It wasn’t the job itself that was worrying Jim, though. He felt pretty confident about it, if he was being honest. No, what was worrying him were the _circumstances_ of said job.

Jim had been hired by his own father.

If that wasn’t one of the biggest cases of nepotism he had ever heard, he didn’t know what was.

Michael had told him time and time again not to worry about it, but Jim wasn’t sure he was able to let the fears go. He was going to have to give himself a different last name, lie about who he was, and lie about any connections he had with Michael. It was starting to sound less like a day job and more like the two of them were about to commit a felony.

“Relax, Jim, hiring your family members isn’t a felony,” Michael said when Jim arrived early that day to discuss the plan of action, “At least, I don’t think so…”

“No, it’s not literally a felony, I just meant that it feels like it is.”

Michael rolled his eyes. “You’ve always been so anxious about everything, how do you live, even?”

“Oh, well, let’s see. I eat food, drink water, breathe oxygen occasionally…” Jim jokingly counted on his fingers.

Michael rolled his eyes again, but in a much more playful manner. “But seriously, it’s going to be totally fine! I didn’t just hire you on a _whim_. You went through the entire process: interview, background checks, the whole enchilada. And you nailed it!”

“Doesn’t change the fact that I’m your son.”

“Bah, whatever.” Michael waved his hand dismissively. “What’s the worst that could possibly happen?”

“We get found out and your credibility significantly decreases,” Jim explained matter-of-factly.

“You are such a buzzkill, you know that? A buzzkill. I should just call you buzzkill from now on.” Michael’s eyes lit up. “Hey! That could be your new last name! Buzzkill!”

“Haha, real funny,” Jim stated sarcastically as Michael burst out laughing. Jim began to put his coat on in preparation to leave. “You know, speaking of last names, I still need one. One that _isn’t_ buzzkill.” Jim added, seeing how Michael was preparing to repeat his joke.

“Right, right, I was thinking of a few the other day, and I think I found one that might work!” Michael explained excitedly. Jim mentally prepared himself for an absolutely _terrible_ last name, since Michael seemed to have a real knack for finding the most absurd, ridiculous surnames ever conceived.

“How does Halpert sound?”

Jim blinked. That… wasn’t a bad last name. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more it just seemed to fit.

“That sounds good, actually.”

“Great! Halpert it is, then!” Michael exclaimed. His triumphant expression morphed into an affronted one as he fully processed Jim’s words. “Wait, what do you mean by ‘actually’?”

“You know what I mean,” Jim stated dryly.

“Oh, just because I suggested MacQuoid once, that suddenly means I’m incapable of coming up with good names?” Michael asked in a scandalized tone.

“You _also_ suggested Sallow,” Jim began, “And Dankworth. And Soup. And－”

“Alright, alright, I get it,” Michael sighed in defeat, “But Soup _should_ be a last name.”

They both laughed a bit more before Jim noticed that it was about time for them to leave. They both finished putting their coats on and prepared to set off. Before Jim could exit, however, Michael stopped him.

“What is it?” Jim asked in confusion as Michael put a hand on his arm.

“There’s, uh, something else I need to tell you… about the job…” Michael began. Jim perked up at this. “Before you get to work, we’re going to have to talk to human resources to get you set up with a file and everything. It’s part of the hiring process, or some garbage like that.”

Jim raised his eyebrow at Michael in confusion. Yeah, it would be a bit tricky, but talking to HR was hardly the most difficult thing the two of them were doing. Sure, the HR rep would have to be _very_ convinced that the two of them were in no way related, but after that, the coast was clear. The task certainly didn’t warrant the large expression of concern adorning Michael’s face. “...And?”

“It’s Toby.”

“What?”

“The HR guy. It’s Toby.”

Oh.

_Oh._

“...Shit.”

Jim knew who Toby was. He had even met him a few times in the past, since he and Michael were friends. Well, “friends” wasn’t the right word. “Bitter enemies” would be more accurate, even if it was more one-sided than anything. Still, Jim knew who Toby was.

And Toby knew who _Jim_ was, as well.

“Michael, he knows that I’m your son! How is this going to work?” Jim asked, feeling his anxiety spike.

“Relax! I’ve got this!” Michael assured confidently, “I’ll just use my charm and convince him to let you work.”

“I don’t think you’ve said a charming thing about him ever.”

“Whatever. Threats work, too!”

Jim had a terrible feeling about all of this.

“You can’t just threaten people, Michael,” Jim explained exasperatedly, “But I just want to get this whole thing over with, so I’m leaving.”

The drive to the office was a tough one. Jim couldn’t stop his heart from racing. He knew that he was overreacting, and that what he was about to do really wasn’t all that bad, but he just couldn’t help the small amount of guilt pooling in his stomach.

Things seemed to happen incredibly fast. Before he knew it, he had arrived at the office building, gotten to the correct floor, stepped inside the office, and was being dragged by Michael towards the back after a few rushed greetings. And that was how he had ended up face to face with Toby Flenderson, trying to convince him that he deserved to work there.

“Michael, you can’t just hire your own son.”

“I can, too! He went through the interview process and everything, and I’ve _personally_ deemed him a good fit.”

“You have to be able to see the flaw in that logic, Michael.”

“What flaws? There aren’t any flaws! My logic is flawless!”

Jim just sat silently as Michael and Toby argued, wishing more than anything that it would all be over soon. It didn’t appear to be heading in that direction, though.

Jim really hoped that he would be allowed to work. It seemed quite pathetic to be fired before he even had a chance to start. Toby seemed pretty dead-set on not letting him work, but Jim knew that if there was one thing that could get someone to change their mind, it was Michael’s exasperating, unyielding persistence. There was no way to know what outcome was going to come of this whole thing, so that was why Jim merely sat quietly and waited with growing restlessness.

“I swear to god, Toby, I _will_ fire you!”

“You can’t fire me, Michael…”

Jim zoned out for the rest of the conversation, letting the others’ voices fade into background noise. It wasn’t like he was contributing to the conversation, anyway. He took the opportunity to more closely examine the room they were in. He felt his heart skip a beat when he noticed that there were some desks behind the fake wall they were seated next to, but relaxed when he realized that nobody was sitting there.

“YES!”

Jim nearly fell out of his seat at Michael’s exclamation. Toby looked slightly taken aback, as well. Jim’s eyes widened as he listened to Michael’s excited comments, putting the pieces together in his head.

“Wait, I… I’m allowed to work?”

“YES, Jim! We did it!” Michael exclaimed excitedly before returning to his celebration.

Jim looked at Toby, not quite believing what he was hearing. “...Really?”

Toby nodded, a defeated expression on his face. Jim couldn’t help his smile. _He had actually gotten the job._

“Thank you,” Jim said weakly, still not quite believing his ears. He let out a noise of surprise as Michael yanked him out of his chair.

“Come on! I have to show you to your desk, and you have to meet all of the other employees and form a familial bond with them, and－”

“Hold on, Michael,” Toby interjected, “Make sure you don’t give Jim any special treatment.”

“Oh, shut up,” Michael hissed under his breath.

“No, no, he’s right,” Jim replied, pulling his arm from Michael’s grip, “Remember what we talked about? No special treatment, got it?”

“I got it, I got it,” Michael sighed, “I wasn’t going to treat you any differently, anyway.”

“Good, we’re all settled then.” Jim smiled.

Michael glared at the floor for a moment before directing his gaze towards Toby. “Now that we’re ‘settled’, I have one thing to say: don’t talk to me or my son ever again.”

“No, Michael…” Jim sighed, “Thank you, Toby. For the opportunity.”

“I mean it! That’s a threat!”

“Alright, we’re done here.” Jim led Michael out of the room before Toby had time to change his mind about the whole thing.

“You could’ve let me finish…” Michael whined.

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should,” Jim replied. He turned to Michael and smiled.

”Now, where do I sit?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I was telling my friend about this, she said I had to include the line “don’t talk to me or my son ever again”, and guess what? I did it dhderfffh
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this!! Please leave comments if you did, even if they’re just one word! Hope you’re having a great day/night, stay safe out there!


	4. Tension

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Can you write one about the Jim and Pam drama in season 9.. like with athlead and stuff? It’s just that I haven’t seen many fanfics around that and it sounds like it would be really interesting! 😀😀😀“  
> ~bertmacklinFBI
> 
> It felt like they were travelling in different directions, the rope between them growing tighter and tighter with each step they took.
> 
> Jim didn’t want to think about what it would mean if the rope snapped.
> 
> [TW: marital problems]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FOR SEASON 9 OF THE OFFICE!! IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY WATCHING IT, OR PLAN ON WATCHING IT, DO NOT READ THIS FIC!!
> 
> HELLO AGAIN!!!
> 
> I feel like a broken record saying sorry about how long this took, but.... sorry about the wait haha! Please keep in mind that no matter how long it takes me to write these chapters, I’m NOT abandoning these requests. Unless I’m literally dead, I will finish writing these. Even if it takes a long ass time.
> 
> This one... kind of ran away on me lol. There was SO MUCH I wanted to include, but I couldn’t possibly include it all. It’s already SUPER LONG as is dhdfegdffg maybe one day I’ll write a longer side fic....
> 
> I just want to preface this by saying that I feel like the requests I’ve been posting have all been super long, and I just want to say that not all of them are going to be that long. I have a lot of difficulty controlling the length of the things I write, so please note that there is no “set length” for any of my fics.
> 
> Alright, enough of me rambling! On with the fic!! Hope you enjoy!!

He didn’t know why he even took the stupid job in the first place.

Well, okay, he _did_ know why. The job wasn’t stupid. It was _amazing_ , in fact. Wonderfully incredible. A literal dream come true.

Alright, he was laying it on a bit thick. But it did mean a lot for his future.

The future was, in fact, something he thought about from time to time. Sometimes, he just couldn’t help but feel trapped in his current life. The future was always looming ahead, so important and so... _unknown._ It scared him, if he was being honest. There was no way of knowing what was ahead.

Most of the time, Jim was able to ignore these concerns. He was able to kick back, relax, and focus on the “here and now”, as some would put it. But, sometimes, those anxieties were reintroduced by some sort of outside reminder, and he just couldn’t shake them.

So, that was why he picked up the phone and took the job.

Really, it wasn’t _why_ he took up the opportunity that was causing him so much confusion and frustration. That seemed crystal clear to him at this point.

No, the real “why” he was having troubles with was _why_ he hadn’t told Pam yet.

He didn’t want to hide things from her. He didn’t want them to be “that couple”, the kind that would keep secrets from each other and go behind each other’s backs.

But that was what he was doing, wasn’t it? _God_ , he felt awful about it.

So why didn’t he just _tell her already?_

With each day of silence that passed by, the weight of the secret he was holding seemed to increase significantly. Jim wanted to tell Pam, really he did. But whenever he thought about what he would say, or how he would go about doing it, he froze up. He was just so anxious about her saying no, he wasn’t allowed to do it, that he kept avoiding it all. He didn’t want her to force him to quit such a life-changing opportunity.

Truthfully, he knew that Pam couldn’t force him to do anything, just as he would never dream of forcing _her_ to do anything, but the idea of her not approving was fear-inducing, all the same.

Another reason why Jim didn’t want to tell Pam about his business ventures was that he didn’t want to upset her. The idea that something he had chosen would hurt his wife was _nauseating_ , to say the least. So, in order to protect Pam’s feelings, he kept everything hidden and pretended that everything was normal.

Unfortunately, his plan was backfiring. _Hard._

Despite Jim not letting on anything, their relationship seemed to be becoming somewhat strained. They stumbled around each other, as if beating around a much larger issue that both of them refused to address. It was becoming harder and harder to even have a normal conversation, as Jim kept being eaten up by guilt every time he opened his mouth, and Pam was clearly starting to notice that he wasn’t being entirely truthful.

It was quickly becoming a lose-lose-lose situation. He would lose. Pam would lose. Everyone was going to lose. “Lose” was starting to sound less and less like an actual word as Jim kept anxiously running the thought through his head.

Those anxious thoughts were exactly what led Jim down to the warehouse.

Jim could feel guilt overwhelming him as he realized that he was telling _Darryl_ about his plans before his own wife. But, really, Darryl was the one to break him out of his self-induced spiral in the end. Jim’s attempts to pitch the idea to Darryl were lined with attempts at convincing _himself_ that he was doing the right thing, but the other man eventually shut them down.

“Come on, man, I thought you had a real thing going.”

“It… It _is_ real…”

“It’s not real unless your wife’s on board.”

And that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Jim stayed silent for a long moment after, just staring at his hands as he realized that he couldn’t run anymore. He couldn’t lie to Pam anymore.

“I just… I don’t know how to do it. I don’t know what to say to…” Jim broke off, not knowing how to complete the sentence. He felt like enough had been said.

Darryl sighed sympathetically. “You just gotta tell her, man. You gotta tell her exactly what’s going on. _She_ deserves to know the truth, and _you_ deserve to say what’s on your mind.”

Jim bit his lip before nodding. “...You’re right. Thanks.”

It felt like both seconds and years before Jim saw Pam and Nellie walk into the warehouse. He took a deep breath as his heart leapt into his throat, preparing himself to share the news that he had been hiding. Ignoring Nellie’s weirdly hostile remarks, Jim and Pam entered the small office space beside where they were standing and closed themselves off from everyone else.

The silence was deafening as Jim felt his throat close, forgetting every word he had prepared before Pam’s arrival. Pam was staring at him expectantly now, and _oh god_ she looked stressed, and it felt like his heart had already broken through his ribcage with how hard it was beating, and he _just couldn’t take it anymore._

And, finally, everything spilled out of him.

Jim told her everything. He told her about how and when and why he took the job, told her about what it all entailed, told her about how he had gotten Darryl on board, told her about why he had waited so long to tell _her._ He told her _everything_ he was thinking and feeling, and suddenly they both had tears in their eyes and they were embracing each other and everything finally felt just a little bit lighter.

“I’m so, so sorry I waited so long to tell you, I… I really should have told you earlier, I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay,” Pam whispered, “It’s alright.”

They separated, simply staring into each other’s eyes. “...Is it?” Jim asked after a moment, doubt clearly evident in his tone, “Is it really?”

Pam stared hard, her expression unchanging. “It will be.”

And for a while, it was. They returned to their old patterns, and everything seemed to be going fine. Everything was great. Everything was _normal._

But then everything fell apart once again.

Their conversations were becoming awkward and forced again. They started getting into more and more fights, each one steadily getting more heated. It felt like there was a rope connecting their hearts, but now that they were travelling in what felt like two completely different directions, it kept growing tighter. It kept gaining more and more tension.

Jim didn’t want to think about what it would mean if the rope snapped.

Even when things were starting to look up － good things happening with Athlead, Darryl and him becoming roommates, Pam potentially moving to Philadelphia － they always ended up getting dashed against the rocks. Jim barely even knew what to _do_ anymore, and he found himself crying more than once due to stress and frustration.

When he found out that _Pam_ had cried as a direct result of something that _he_ had done, though, he knew it was time for the two of them to face the music and make some changes.

They had started couple’s therapy. And Jim was _terrified._

The first session really wasn’t all too bad. The therapist had gotten the two of them to “speak their truths” to each other, as she had put it, and told the two of them to work on their openness and appreciation for one another.

It somehow made their conversations even _more_ awkward than before, apparently to the point that Clark had thought that they were on drugs.

It hurt. They were still stepping around each other, they were still fighting, everything still _hurt._ He knew that things weren’t going to be magically fixed after just one session, but it was difficult to see that they were still slipping.

Still, they were improving, Jim could feel it. If they kept at it, maybe they’d be able to salvage their relationship. All they had to do was not give up. Jim wasn’t going to give up.

He prayed that Pam wasn’t going to give up.

He expressed as much to her as he was about to leave for the day. He explained that he was sure the two of them could make it if they just kept at it. They just needed to keep going.

Jim tried to give Pam a wave goodbye as he approached the door, but she was busy looking at her monitor. He let his hand fall heavily at his side, feeling darker than he already did. He pushed through the door and took the elevator down to the parking lot. The sky was grey as he walked towards the cab waiting for him. Each step he took felt heavier and heavier.

Just as he was about to sit down in the cab, he heard Pam call out his name.

Jim stepped out of the cab, seeing Pam wave his forgotten umbrella in the air. She caught up to him and handed the umbrella over. Something twisted in his chest.

“Thanks,” he said quietly. Their hands brushed as he took the umbrella, and his body suddenly felt very cold. He stared at Pam’s retreating figure, then at the open door of the cab, then at Pam again, before he threw the umbrella into the vehicle and bolted after her.

“Pam.” Jim grabbed her arm and turned her around. He had a million things he wanted－no, _needed_ to tell her. She looked up at him in confusion. Her shirt was soft. He felt like he could get lost in her eyes forever.

“I…” Jim began, but he didn’t even know how to continue. It would take a thousand lifetimes to share everything that he wanted to share with her. He put his other hand on her shoulder, taking in every detail of her face. He was always drawn back to her eyes, though. _God_ , he had _always_ loved her eyes. There was so much he needed to tell her, so much she needed to know.

Because he loved her, he _loved her_ , he would _never_ stop loving her.

The next thing he knew, he was embracing her as tightly as he could without crushing her. He ran his hands along her back and through her hair, and buried his face in the crook of her neck. Everything was swirling and overwhelming him, but one thing he knew was that he _needed_ to be close to her, to feel her pressed against him.

He felt his heart freeze when Pam separated from the hug, but the next thing he knew, she cupped his face in her hands and connected their lips together. It was the most beautiful, wonderful, _amazing_ kiss they had ever shared. Jim felt like he was soaring.

They broke off the kiss, touching their noses together as they stared into each other’s eyes. “I love you,” they both breathed out at the same time, causing them both to laugh. They were both crying, both holding each other, both together.

Jim thought back to their words during their initial conversation.

_”It’s okay. It’s alright.”_

They connected their lips again. Pam carded a hand through his hair.

_”Is it? Is it really?”_

The tension between them loosened. Jim felt like he could breathe again. He never wanted to let go.

_”It will be.”_

And finally, _finally_ , it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewatched the ending scene in order to remember what happened and I forgot how emotional it was and I literally started crying SHDGDGGFG I definitely did NOT do it justice
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!! Please leave kudos and comments if you did, especially the latter! Even if it’s just one word!! It really means a lot! :)
> 
> Love ya guys!! Stay safe!! <33


	5. Tease

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Established Jim/Dwight with implied bottom!Jim. Jim is wearing a tight pair of pair pants, teasing his bf at the office, and Dwight can't stop sneaking glances at his butt."  
> ~Reisho
> 
> Jim is bored. Dwight is distracted.
> 
> Just a typical day at the office.
> 
> [TW: suggestive themes/topics (fairly mild)]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ:
> 
> So... Life has been kicking my ass recently. About 2 or so weeks ago, I started suffering from extremely bad insomnia and having frequent severe panic attacks (like, the "I feel like I'm dying" kind). I even ended up in the hospital at one point (my life was not in danger, don't worry). I was hardly able to work on this or ANY other fic, for that matter. I've just been prescribed anxiety meds for the first time in my life, and one side effect of these pills is that they could make me depressed, so updates might slow down significantly for the next 2 weeks or so. I'm starting to get slightly better, so here's to hoping. I honestly love all of you guys so much, and I'm not abandoning y'all, but these have been some of the hardest times of my life, and I'm trying my hardest to get by. Thank you all for your support throughout everything, I'm not leaving you guys!! <33
> 
> OKAY NOW ONTO LESS SERIOUS STUFF:
> 
> Welllllll fics like this are hard for me to write because I get flustered SOOOO easily jdhfsjhsgdjffs also I intended for this to be a lot shorter but then it kind of ran away from me so SHFJHGFJHGFJH  
> I feel like I gave Jim too much top energy (power bottom energy?) and for that I apologize, I suck at these kinds of dynamics hdfsdhgfshdf  
> I really hope you enjoy this fic, even if it did take 20 bazillion years! It was honestly a lot of fun to write hdfjsdhgsdhf
> 
> Love you all! Hope you enjoy! <33

Jim tapped his pen on his desk, groaning internally as he stared at the papers laid out before him. He would rather do literally anything else than work at that moment, but he was fresh out of procrastination ideas. The most brilliant thing he could come up with right then was watching the clock on his computer count the minutes, but that, too, was quickly becoming tedious.

Jim turned to the man sitting next to him. “Dwight. I’m bored.”

Dwight didn’t even turn his eyes away from his monitor. “Then do your work.”

“Can’t,” Jim stated, “My dog ate it.”

Dwight finally turned to face him, giving him a disgruntled look. “You don’t have a dog, Jim.”

“Oh, but I do.” Jim smirked. “He just turns invisible everytime you come over.”

Dwight scoffed. “That’s impossible.”

“How do you know? You’ve never seen my dog. How do you know he’s not invisible if you’ve never seen him?”

“I－” Dwight began, but he cut himself off. He glared and turned back towards his monitor with a huff. “Whatever, idiot.”

“Come on, you know you love me.”

“No, I don’t. I hate everything about you,” Dwight retorted, but his eyes were soft.

Jim felt his cheeks heat up slightly. He grinned. “Good, because I hate you, too.”

Dwight muttered several things under his breath before returning to his work. Jim, on the other hand, was still trying to figure out ways to _not_ return to his work. He sighed heavily, laying his head down on his desk in an over dramatic fashion.

“I’m ignoring you.”

Jim picked his head up to look at Dwight. “Doesn’t sound like you’re ignoring me.”

Dwight sputtered, pointedly avoiding eye-contact with him. “I’m ignoring you as of now!”

“Aw, don’t ignore me. Pretty please?” Jim tried to put on his best puppy-dog eyes, but Dwight refused to spare him a glance. Jim frowned in annoyance when he realized his plan wasn’t going to work.

Fine. If his boyfriend was going to ignore him, he was going to go annoy his best friend instead.

Jim pushed away from his desk and walked up to reception. Pam quirked an eyebrow up at him as he approached.

“I’m busy.”

“That’s no way to greet your best friend in the whole universe.”

Pam smirked. “The whole universe, huh?”

“Well, at least half of the universe.”

Pam rolled her eyes playfully before looking back at Jim. “Is Dwight ignoring you or something?”

“Yeah. How’d you know?” Jim asked.

“I was listening to your entire conversation.”

“Beesly!” Jim sputtered, “You were eavesdropping?”

“What? I was bored.”

“I thought you said you were busy.”

“I _am_ busy,” Pam assured, “I _was_ bored. People change, Halpert.”

It was Jim’s turn to roll his eyes. “Ha ha. Real clever, Beesly,” he responded sarcastically, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to make myself another cup of coffee. Maybe the caffeine will help motivate me to do less work.”

“Have fun,” Pam wished him half-heartedly before returning to her work. Jim huffed before turning around and heading to the kitchen. He made himself a very welcome cup of coffee before proceeding to sip it slowly while staring at the wall opposite to him, deciding that it was infinitely more interesting than his responsibilities. Eventually, though, his mug ran out of liquid, meaning that he had to reluctantly return to his desk.

Jim sat down in his chair with a sigh, wishing more than ever that he was anywhere but there. He didn’t think it was possible for humans to reach the level of boredom he currently felt, but apparently it was. Jim sighed again.

“Oh, shut up, you’re being so dramatic,” Dwight muttered.

Jim looked up at him with slight surprise. “I thought you were ignoring me,” he said with a smirk.

Dwight sputtered before glaring. “I _am_ ignoring you. Now, be quiet.”

Jim put his hands up in mock surrender. “Whatever you say, boss,” he responded, but Dwight was ignoring him again.

It was weird, though. Dwight almost _never_ forgot when he was ignoring someone. Was something distracting him?

Unfortunately, he would have to put that investigation on the backburner for now. The work strewn messily across his desk was starting to look rather imposing, and Jim figured that he would rather be earning money than unemployed. Jim grabbed one of the various papers on his desk and began to read. His brain was already short-circuiting due to boredom. Maybe he could multitask…

Jim stopped reading when he noticed what looked like Dwight staring at him in his peripheral. He turned his head to look at Dwight, but the man had snapped his head back towards his monitor. Or maybe Jim had imagined Dwight’s staring. Jim shook his head and returned to the task at hand.

But then it happened again.

Jim turned his gaze towards Dwight much quicker than he had previously, allowing him to see the other man snap his head back towards his computer as if he _hadn’t_ just been staring. Jim noted with slight surprise that Dwight’s face was flushed.

“You got something to say, Dwight?” Jim asked.

Dwight narrowed his eyes as he shook his head curtly, his cheeks still tinged red. Jim quirked an eyebrow up at him, but Dwight wasn’t giving him anything else. _Weird._

Jim was determined to catch Dwight in action. He pretended to focus on his work, but he was secretly watching his boyfriend through his peripheral vision. Sure enough, Dwight slowly turned his head to look in Jim’s direction.

Jim felt his face heat up as he realized exactly _what_ Dwight was staring at.

Jim stood up quickly from his chair and made his way over to reception. Pam smirked at him as he leaned on the desk.

“Someone’s a bit red in the face.”

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, can you tell me something?” Jim leaned farther on the desk. “Is Dwight staring at my butt right now?”

“Ew, keep your couple nonsense in the bedroom,” Pam replied jokingly, flicking her eyes to the side and then back at Jim, “But yes.”

“ _I knew it,_ ” Jim whispered, very much ignoring how warm his face was.

Pam smirked again. “He was also staring when you were at my desk before and went to go get coffee.”

It was getting extremely hard to ignore how flustered he was anymore. Jim shook his head to clear some of the fog and grinned at Pam. “I’m officially not bored anymore.”

Pam waved him away with a smile. “Great, great, now you two go ogle each other over there.”

Jim sat back down in his chair, noticing that Dwight’s face was very much still red. He raised an eyebrow, leaning towards his boyfriend with a smirk. “You like what you see?”

Dwight’s eyes widened slightly as he snapped his head to look at Jim. He narrowed his gaze again. “I have no idea what you are referring to.”

“I can see you staring at my ass, Dwight.”

Dwight’s blush deepened as he stumbled for an answer. “It’s hard not to look when you’re wearing girl pants, Halpert. But I wasn’t staring at your ass, or whatever.”

“Right, so,” Jim began, “You were merely gazing at my butt because you were inspecting the tightness of my pants.”

“Yes, obviously.”

“That’s called staring at someone’s ass, Dwight.”

Dwight exhaled loudly and scowled at him. His face was bright red. “It’s not… It wasn’t… _That’s not what it is, Jim._ ”

“You don’t need to defend yourself,” Jim began, lowering his voice and leaning towards his boyfriend with a smirk, “I don’t mind it. Maybe after work we could…” He ran a hand along Dwight’s arm, “stare a bit more, if you know what I mean. Your place or mine?”

Dwight stared at him for a bit before composing himself. “My place. I was at yours last time.”

“Perfect,” Jim grinned, slowly removing his hand from Dwight’s arm, “I’ll be there 15 minutes after work. I just have to drop some things off at my house, grab a few things, feed the dog…”

“You _don’t_ have a dog, Jim!”

“That’s what you think.”

Eventually, it was 5 o’clock. Jim was mulling over the last of his work, having gotten enough done that termination was off the table. He noticed that Dwight had gotten up from his chair and was now standing beside him. Jim looked up at him expectantly and was preparing to speak, but he was cut off by Dwight connecting their lips together. When they separated, all Jim could do for a moment was stare up at Dwight, his face flushed deeply.

“See you in 15,” Dwight whispered in his ear, brushing a strand of hair out of Jim’s face before walking out of the door.

Jim exhaled shakily, suddenly feeling extremely flustered. Dwight always knew exactly how to get into his head. He eventually stood up from his chair and gathered his things in preparation to leave. As he was walking out, Pam shot him a smirk and a wink, which he rolled his eyes at.

Today wasn’t such a terrible day after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you enjoyed this! And again, I'm sorry about the current delays and any future delays, life has been hard lately. If you enjoyed, please comment, even if it's just one word! I love and appreciate any comments!!
> 
> Happy pride month, black lives matter, have a great day/night!! <33


	6. Shock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I don’t have any specific ideas, but it’d be great if there were more Jim whump fics around. I liked your other whump fic about him, it was really good! I kinda like sudden accidental concussions, or being very feverish and fainting all of a sudden."  
> ~Missfluffylove
> 
> It was a nice day outside, so Jim decided to walk to work.
> 
> That turned out to be a mistake
> 
> [TW: blood, descriptions of injuries/pain, hospitals/medical stuff, mentions of drugs (pain meds)]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow it's been such a short amount of time since I last posted how crazy is that? /s
> 
> I've been working on this one pretty much since I posted the previous chapter, but I've just been..... really slow lol. But is that new? No. But good news is that I'm doing a lot better mental health-wise! I'm just slow af when it comes to writing lmaoooo
> 
> As for the fic itself, this was super fun to write! It felt really good to write some angst/whump again (mwa ha ha) but honestly, I had quite a bit of difficulty coming up with the idea. I legit started writing a different fic idea but then scrapped it in favour of this one fdsjfjsdfhdsgs (I do still want to maybe make it into a one-shot one day) Buuuut yeah I really like how this one turned out!
> 
> Now, warning, I don't know SHIT about medical stuff. I tried my best, and I researched to the best of my ability, but if there is stuff in here that is inaccurate or just flat-out wrong, I sincerely apologize. If I DID write something incorrect, I would really appreciate knowing for future reference! :)
> 
> Anyway, enough of me rambling, I hope y'all enjoy! I love all of you guys so much, you have no idea! <33

The first thing Jim noticed when he opened his eyes was that it was incredibly bright outside.

Jim blinked wearily and squinted, trying to block out the harsh sunlight assaulting his eyes. His vision was blurry and unfocused, and he had a hard time keeping his eyelids from drooping. Everything felt heavy.

He felt something hard and rough pressing against his back and realized that he was lying down. The surface he was sprawled out on was slightly cool to the touch, yet he could still feel beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Everything felt heavy.

He heard humming sounds coming from somewhere above him. They were quiet and distant, and he couldn’t tell what they were. Eventually, though, the ringing in his ears began to fade and he realized that the sounds were voices. He had to squint against the brightness above him, but he could make out at least two figures looking down at him, one of which was addressing him.

“Sir? Sir, can you hear me?”

Jim took in a shuddering breath before responding. “Yes,” he slurred, his tongue feeling much heavier than normal. His mouth tasted strongly of copper.

“What’s your name, sir?”

“J-Jim Halpert.” He tried to look around, but his neck hurt terribly whenever he moved his head. It wasn’t unbearable, but it was enough for him to wince.

The woman leaning over him lightly placed her hands on Jim’s shoulders for a moment. “Try not to move too much, sir. You’ve sustained quite a few injuries.”

“Injuries?” Jim asked, suddenly feeling much more awake than he was moments before. Despite just being told to hold still, the shock of the news caused him to try and push himself into a sitting position. However, when he pushed his arms against the ground, his right arm absolutely _exploded_ in pain, causing him to collapse back down with a yelp. As he hit the ground once more, his head and chest spiked harshly as well.

“ _Please_ try not to move, sir,” the woman that Jim now recognized as a paramedic said with worry, “I know you must be eager to go, but we’re preparing a stretcher for you. It shouldn’t take too long. Just try to relax as best as you can, okay?”

Jim blinked away the tears that had formed due to the pain and laid his head down on the surface beneath him, feeling tired once again. His vision was spinning once more and he felt like he was both floating and falling at the same time. He tried to wrack his brain for memories, but everything was fuzzy and distorted in his mind. “...What happened?”

“You were hit by a car as you were crossing the pedestrian crosswalk.” Jim sucked in a breath. “Luckily, it wasn’t dangerously fast, and you’re going to be alright, but you still sustained some injuries.” The paramedic paused for a moment, as if thinking. “You really don’t remember?”

He tried once again to draw up the memories, but all he could see were flashes and blurs that resembled nothing. He felt concern bubble up inside of him. “N-No, I don’t.”

The paramedic nodded and hummed softly. “Don't be too anxious, memory loss is common in concussed patients. Now, I just need to ask you a few questions to test your cognitive functioning. It won’t take too long. Is that alright with you?”

Jim closed his eyes as the brightness became too strong once again. He noticed that he was trembling slightly even though he wasn’t very cold. “Yes, it is.”

The questions seemed easy enough. The paramedic asked him his name again and his age, and also where they were, which Jim deduced to be a roadway of some kind. He couldn’t remember _exactly_ which street it was, but he knew he recognized it, and he knew its general location. He was also asked the day, date, month, and year, which he remembered with little difficulty.

The question he was having trouble with, however, was what had happened to him.

He remembered that he had woken up earlier than usual and had been unable to fall back asleep, so he had decided to use the extra time he had to walk to work instead of drive. The journey was mostly a blur, but he did remember turning onto a crosswalk at some point. Everything after that point was a complete mystery.

He could tell what possible injuries he had sustained from examining himself. He was certainly concussed, that much was clear. His right arm was badly injured, with the most likely answer being that it was broken or fractured. His left arm also ached severely, but he could shift it without excruciating pain. His chest was also badly hurt, with the pain feeling like it was coming from his ribs. He figured out that his nose was bleeding and that he had bitten his lip at some point, both of which explained the bloody taste in his mouth. He also had pain in various places all over his body, which was to be expected after getting slammed into by a moving vehicle.

“Now, Jim－Sorry, do you mind if I call you that?”

“Knock yourself out.”

“Alright, thank you. Now, Jim,” the paramedic began once again, “We’re going to need to brace your broken arm so that we can properly load you onto the stretcher. It may hurt a bit, but it will prevent any further injury or damage from occurring when loading you into the ambulance. Do you understand?”

Jim was about to nod his head before he remembered that he was lying down. “Yes, I understand.”

With that, they set to work. They wrapped a sling-like contraption around his abdomen and shoulder before carefully lifting his arm up and moving it towards his chest. Jim couldn’t help but wince and groan a bit as his arm spiked painfully, but luckily it was over rather quickly. Besides, the brace made it feel a bit more comfortable.

Jim was hit with another wave of fatigue as he lay his head on the asphalt and closed his eyes. He tuned out everything else at that point, feeling too tired to make conversation anymore. The initial shock of everything was starting to wear off, making his injuries more and more apparent as time passed. His whole body absolutely _ached._

Jim felt a hard board slide underneath his back, and eventually he felt himself being lifted into the air. He opened his eyes slowly, realizing that he had finally been loaded onto the stretcher. He was brought over to the ambulance before being placed inside.

He had never actually seen the inside of an ambulance. At least, not within his memory. When he was a kid, he was driven to the hospital by his parents if something went awry, and in his adult years he had never had a serious enough incident to warrant a hospital trip.

Well, not until then.

It was actually a lot more spacious than he had imagined. The bed he was now laying on also provided him with more comfort and support than the asphalt had.

Fatigue hit him once again, as well as a sharp pain in his skull. Jim couldn’t help but place his non-broken hand over his eyes in order to shield them from the brightness surrounding him.

“Are you doing alright, Jim?” It was a different voice than the paramedic he had been communicating with before. The question was asked with a tone of concern and sympathy.

Jim risked a glance at the man who had spoken to him before going back to shielding his eyes. “...Yeah. It’s just really bright,” he mumbled, trying to fight off the tiredness clouding his brain, “and my head hurts.” In all honesty, his _everything_ hurt, but his head was causing him the most issues at that moment.

The paramedic hummed sympathetically. “Yeah, that’s understandable after receiving a concussion. It won’t take long to get to the hospital, and then you’ll get the treatment you need. It’s going to be alright.”

Jim smiled weakly. Even if the words spoken didn’t immediately fix his problems, he still really appreciated the encouragement. “Thank you.”

He talked on and off with the paramedics sitting in the ambulance with him during the drive to the hospital. He was really tired and in pain, but it was comforting to have people to talk to. It helped distract him and calm him down.

Time seemed to be flowing very weirdly for Jim. The drive to the hospital seemed like it took a century and barely lasted a second at the same time. By the time they had arrived, he was incredibly out of it.

He remembered staring up at the hospital ceiling, bright lights assaulting his eyes, and flashes of various other scattered moments (like what he later deduced to be the inside of an MRI machine), but the rest was a blacked out blur. The next moment of clarity occurred when he slowly cracked open his eyes to discover he was in a hospital bed.

His body still ached, but it hurt _much_ less than it had, most likely due to the pain meds being pumped into his system. His head spun slightly due to the drugs, but he had been more doped up in the past. His arm was now put into a proper cast, and his left leg was also put into a brace of sorts.

“You’re awake!”

Jim hadn’t realized there was another person in the room with him. He slowly turned his head towards the source of the excited whisper, being mindful of his sore neck, and saw the relieved face of his girlfriend.

“Pam…” Jim mumbled, a soft smile appearing on his face. _God,_ was he happy to see her. The thought of her waiting in the hospital room for him to wake up also filled his heart with joy and love.

Pam pulled the chair she was sitting in closer to the bed so that Jim didn’t have to crane his neck as far to visit with her. Her eyes were shining with tears. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Well… mostly okay. How are you holding up?”

“I feel like I’ve been hit by something really heavy, but it really doesn’t hurt all too bad,” Jim admitted, “Drugs are _awesome._ ”

Pam laughed at his joke. “Glad to see your personality’s still intact. But seriously, I’m so glad you’re doing alright. I was worried sick about you when the hospital called the office.”

Jim smiled. “You wish you could get rid of me, Beesly.”

Pam smiled back at him and lightly pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Consider that an apology kiss for what’s about to happen next.”

Jim looked up at her confused. “What? What do you mean?”

“You have more visitors.”

The next thing he knew, the doors had flung open and the room was filled with noise. His ears were still incredibly sensitive, as were his eyes, which he had screwed shut on instinct. As he opened them once again, he was face-to-face with Michael Scott.

“Oh my god, you’re alive! I was so worried!” Michael exclaimed in his usual over-excited way. He then directed his attention to his other coworkers. “I didn’t do it this time. I didn’t hit Jim with my car. It wasn’t me!” He looked back at Jim. “It wasn’t me, right?”

Jim smirked. “Well, I didn’t really get a look at who hit me, so I have no idea.”

Michael’s smile faltered before he started aggressively defending himself. “It wasn’t me! I didn’t do it this time! I’m being serious!”

Jim let out a quiet chuckle. “It wasn’t your car, don’t worry.”

Michael sighed. “See? Not me.”

Pretty much everyone was saying and doing different things, things that Jim didn’t have the energy to decipher. His concussion was still clearly giving him issues, but at least he was in an actual bed and being treated instead of lying in the middle of the road with nothing but asphalt beneath him.

Jim leaned towards Pam, feeling far too fatigued to deal with the usual office shenanigans. “Now I know how Meredith felt,” Jim mumbled, only loud enough for his girlfriend to hear.

Pam let out a light chuckle before whispering back, “At least they won’t be here 24/7.”

“Pamela Beesly, my love, _please_ don’t give them any ideas.”

“Sorry, sorry,” Pam laughed sympathetically. She shifted closer to him so that it was easier for him to lean towards her.

Eventually, Jim was released from the hospital and his wounds began to heal. He also got his memories back as the concussion faded away. The recovery process was quite a pain, but it could’ve been much, much worse. Besides, he had a girlfriend who was more than happy to pamper him, and an entire office that was far too invested in his personal life.

Getting hit by a car was a shitty experience. But, in the end, it wasn’t _too_ terrible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that, kids, is why you should never go on a walk. /j
> 
> I really hope you all enjoyed this! I'm really sorry that I always get these fics out so slow, but it's because I actually want to write something of quality, which is very hard for me to do when I'm not in the writing mood. HUGE props to people who can pump out high-quality fics like it's nothing, but I just don't have those skills lol
> 
> As always, please feel free to leave kudos and comments if you enjoyed, even if it's just one word! I love hearing from y'all and getting your feedback! Hope you all have a great day/night and spend your weekend far away from car accidents ;)


End file.
